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Helene Stapinski, Bonnie Siegler
Rave The New York Times Book Review To write their book, Stapinski and Siegler stitched together a cast of tangential figures and events from several recurring threads: Jewishness, New Yorkiness and... a singular, striving, midcentury Americanness ... The short, punchy chapters combine lively bits of trivia and glimpses of New York City immigrant life... with harrowing accounts of Third Reich atrocities ... Through these gripping, intertwined stories we... witness the birth of Superman, midwifed by a girlie magazine publisher; and watch the abandoned foster child Norma Jeane Mortenson become the biggest star in the world. What’s more American than all that?
Catherine Newman
Rave The New York Times Book Review Here is the thing about this book. It is excruciatingly heartbreaking, but I laughed out loud on almost every page. And I am not an easy laugher. Newman’s voice is hilarious and warm; her characters feel like old friends ... [A] winning novel.
Anonymous
Positive The New York Times Book Review Full disclosure: I know the author of this memoir. I know Duchess Goldblatt the way I know Omar Little and Wonder Woman. I know her the way I know Rhoda Morgenstern and Tony Soprano ... Like most of her 25,000 followers, I feel as if I know her. We interact in real time and I have a strong sense of who she is. I like her posts, and every once in a while, she likes one of mine. And yet reviewing her book doesn’t compromise my ethics in the least. Because I really don’t know her at all ... In fact, the memoir does tell us who Duchess Goldblatt really is, without giving a name. As one of those followers who didn’t want to see behind the curtain, I found it deeply satisfying, unexpectedly moving and not spoilery in the least. And as lovable as the duchess herself ... Duchess and Anonymous subtly, slowly, become one person. She no longer feels alone; neither do her subjects. People find solace in this fictional character — and Anonymous does, too.
Alexandra Petri
Rave The Washington Post Petri writes about what’s happening in the world as if it’s okay ... I have far too many favorites to include here ... I would be remiss to present this is as sheer hilarity. Underneath the jokes is a reminder of the painful period we’ve been living through. The collection also reminds us of the vast number of terrible events that have occurred in the past few years ... If I know anything about America and humanity at large, it’s that we’ll always find new ways to get things wrong, which means there will never be a shortage of new topics for Petri to mock.
Adam Foulds
Positive The New York Times Book Review While Henry’s motivations are pretty transparent, Kristin’s are more of a mystery: What brought her to this place? ... What ultimately causes Kristin to lose her grip on reality isn’t clear, but when she sets off to London to make her and Henry’s relationship real, it is more than a little unnerving ... Dream Sequence succeeds as a narrative thanks to Foulds’s prose. He doesn’t waste a single word, is frequently very funny, insightful and surprising.
Amy Poeppel
Rave The Washington Post ...[a] fun, stress-free escape from current events ... There are many 'types' here, including her hippy-dippy academic parents, but Poeppel gives them all a fresh spin. And she is really, really funny ... Both witty and wise, Small Admissions is a big-hearted, charming novel.
Steven Rowley
Rave The Washington Post ...reading this heart-wrenching but ultimately breathtaking novel was a very profound experience for me ... There are many things dog people will recognize here — and humor too, from Ted’s list of Lily’s nicknames to his guilt for accidentally hurting her ... The book takes a turn into magical realism when Ted sets out to kill the octopus that’s threatening Lily’s life, but there’s useful reality in how he deals with loss.
Mona Awad
Rave The Washington Post The way food and body image define Elizabeth’s life is depressing and sad. But the book is neither. There is so much humor here — much of it dark, but spot on ... Lizzie’s inner dialogue is scathingly funny, especially around people she can’t stand — which is a lot of people.
Helen Ellis
Rave The Washington Post Written in short and even shorter stories, Ellis structures her chapters as how-tos, lists, emails and some straight narrative. The book captures — and warmly lampoons — the scattered nature of modern life. The tales are also catchy, smart and very, very funny.